How do strangers see your Nihon Kens?

13»

Comments

  • @Crispy ... really! I wouldn't have guessed that. I wonder what circumstances made the kishu a more known breed.

    It caught me off guard, anyway :D
  • ~65% of the time people correctly ask, "is that a shiba?" or "is that a shiba inu?"

    The rest of the time I get:
    - "Is that a shibu?"
    - "Is that a puppy or one of those sheena emus?" (uh, both, I guess)
    - "I've never seen a mini husky before!"
    - "Is that an akita puppy?"
    - "Oooh that pup is gonna be HUGE" (I assume they think she is an akita puppy)
    - "I thought she was a pomeranian with a haircut."
    - "That looks like a husky / pomeranian."

    Actually today, some guy ooh'd at Pylea as we were crossing an intersection downtown and asked if he could pet her (in the middle of the crosswalk!) and I said no, and he muttered something about me being Asian as I walked away. I wish I had heard what he said, lol.
  • The neighbors father thought the Kai were wolves. Didn't help that Taka killed their 2 chickens. And of course I can't keep a collar on Taka because she chews hem off. That freaked out the neighbors wife so she texted me freaking because they were going to bite her kids. Meanwhile Jim ( the neighbor) at work in another part of the state is receiving phone calls and texts from his wife and dad in between trying to get a hold of me to let me know one of my dogs is out.
    Taka of course has no idea she did anything wrong... Lol. in fact she was quite plesed with herself... Oh Taka please stopping digging out!!
    I have since found her a training collar with pink material threaded through it... There chew that... Hate leaving collars on especially chain ones but I dont want anyone to shoot her thinking she is a wolf.

    One conversation went like this.
    Stranger : what kind of dog is that?
    Me: are you familar with the Akita from Japan ?
    Him : no
    Me: the Shiba Inu ?
    Him: no
    Me: well ok then, they are calld Kai Ken and they are from Japan...
    Him : Kia Kim?
    Me: Nooo Kai Ken.. K-a-i K-e-n .. Kai and Ken like the name. Ken means dog.
    Him: Oh I heard of those... My uncle had one..
    Me: ( of course you have.. Well of course he does)
    Oh great so you know they are a meduim size Japanese hunting dog.!! Awesome !!

    At that point what else can you say!

  • I once had a neighbour who insisted Tojo (shiba inu) was an "Ainu Spitz." Which is kind of weird, because Ainu is another name given to Hokkaido Ken. You'd think someone who knew about Ainu would know about shiba inu. But it was really weird, because I'd say, "He's a shiba inu", and she'd respond, "Yeah, an Ainu Spitz." So, I'd repeat, "No, shiba inu", and she'd reply, "Ainu Spitz, that's right."

    *shrug*
  • Then there's this gem:

    Stranger: What kind of dog is that?

    Me: Shikoku ken.

    Stranger: Whats that?

    Me: A Japanese hunting dog.

    Stranger: Japanese? Oh, she must be really smart!

    Me: Yeah... she gets straight A's...
  • Sorry to bring up an ancient thread but even here (in Kanagawa, Japan) most people go "Shiba?" at first when they see Sky, and then "wow, Shikoku?!" when I correct them. I've only had one person correctly ID him so far, and that was a woman with four(!) Samoyeds. If only they were more well-known here, too!
  • edited October 2018
    even in Japan my Kai gets mistaken for other types of dogs too! I've had him called a shiba especially when he was a puppy, some people were convinced he wasn't a Japanese dog, others have confused him for different nihonken breeds, but it's really heartening when he does get recognized correctly, especially when people are excited to see a kai or just meet one for the first time. It's a bit like he's a breed ambassador.

    One time a couple of little girls kept telling their mom that he was a wolf!
  • Stranger: Is that a patterdale? I used to own those.
    Me: no, she’s a Japanese Breed.
    Stranger: yeah, a Japanese dog crossed with a patterdale! I had one of those too.
    Me:... r I g h t

    My friend next to me, who ACTUALLY owned a patterdale:
Sign In or Register to comment.